there is breaking news on this wednesday morning. >> workers saving that japanese plant from meltdown are forced to pull back. radiation levels are too dangerous for people. but are the workers already doomed? and the economic disaster impacting markets around the world. but today, some good news. and the radiation fears here in the u.s. should you rush to protect yourself from nuclear fallout? good morning. we begin with breaking developments in japan's deepening nuclear crisis. a new fire at the troubled plant. >> workers frantically trying to cool down one of those crippled reactors were forced to leave, after a dangerous surge in

radiation, stopping efforts to cool down the reactors. >> and on top of this, nerves were furthered rattled when a 6.0 aftershock hit the area. cameras captured the shaky images as the quake rumbled through. >> on top of all that, freezing temperatures and heavy snow are making it even more miserable, for 500,000 people made homeless in the northern part of the country. right now, we're going to go to emily schmidt in washington. emily? >> reporter: today, more problems at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant, meant the last line of defense there grew even thinner. >> the worst-case scenarios are starting to unfold. >> reporter: there was a second fire at the fourth unit. a few hours later, smoke rose from the number three reactor. for an hour, the final 50 workers who were kept to prevent a nuclear meltdown, were sent away. >> the radiation levels are getting so high that

the workers can't stay there. >> reporter: the chief cabinet secretary said radiation levels continue to fluctuate. >> translator: on the whole, it imposes no health hazard. >> reporter: but 140,000 people are evacuated from near the nuclear plant. in tokyo, 150 miles away, people are wearing radiation badges and buying everything in sight. though, one expert says the natural disaster was probably worse. >> i think it's very likely that the tsunami that hit japan will kill considerably more people than the nuclear reactor accident will. >> reporter: the number of people who have died now exceeds 10,000. hundreds of thousands are homeless. the u.s. navy and marines continue search and rescue missions, while u.s. nuclear experts hope to help solve the plant problem before it gets even worse. and in los angeles, the county health officer has warned u.s. citizens against taking iodine as a precaution, saying there's no increased risk of radiation here right now.

peggy and rob? >> right now, the operative phrase. emily schmidt, thanks a lot. let's turn to abc's alex stone in tokyo. alex, these 50 workers at the nuclear plant, we're hearing they're heroes. they're patriots. some people, though, even think it's a suicide mission. >> reporter: that's what they're saying here, too, peggy and rob. good morning. there's a lot of people saying, wow. who would go in and know they're putting their lives at risk like this? these 50 workers have been doing it. they've now been yanked out, which has some people here surprisingly angry. saying, what? you're going to allow these things to control itself and allow the fuel rods to potentially burn themselves up and eat themselves up? but the levels got so high here several hours ago, that it was impossible to keep them there. at that point, it not only was dangerous. but it would have been lethal. and we're told of the effects of losing hair and internal injuries would have started very, very quickly for those workers during that time. but they have been in there at a time when a lot of nuclear

experts are saying the compounding radiation exposure that they had, they likely already have lethal doses of radiation inside of them. >> such a scary thought. and on another note, alex, we know there was a major aftershock again this morning. how often are those happening? and what have you felt in the last few hours? >> reporter: yeah. they come pretty frequently. we probably haven't had one in an hour now. about once a day, we get a big one. and we did today. it was a 6.0. and then, there were reports of a 6.2, as well, right together. but i can tell you, i was trying to take a nap, during what was the nighttime in the u.s. and violently, the shaking started, waking up to it with water bottles falling over on the table. and the building creaking back and forth. it's a normal thing here now. but what's amazing is, that would be a huge earthquake any other time and in any other place. a 6.0 and 6.2, would do massive damage in most cities.

here in tokyo, though, people just kind of look around and say, well, there was another earthquake. and they continue on. it's a very different culture post the 9.0 earthquake, now, a 6.0 for the people who live here seems like nothing. >> unbelievable. you think about that on top of already frayed nerves. alex stone, in tokyo, thank you for that update. >> a new normal. also this morning, we're learning more about the severe impact of last week's tsunami. thousands of seabirds were killed when the massive wave flooded the island of midway, which is northwest of the hawaiian islands. most of the dead birds were albatrosses that either drowned or were buried under debris. and tsunami damage on the big island of hawaii is now in the tens of millions of dollars and expected to jump even higher. residents are still cleaning up what is left of their homes after friday's powerful wave washed ashore. along the bay near the city of kona, homes were shoved off their foundations. and trash was scattered over a wide area of the bay. and our coverage continues today on "good morning america,"

with a look at how many american nuclear plants are also located near earthquake fault lines. well, there are some major developments in the middle east this morning. we're seeing a crackdown against anti-government protesters in the persian gulf nation of bahrain. now, they flooded out of the main square in bahrain's capital, after security forces fired tear gas and then opened fire. two people are dead. many more are injured. it comes one day after the country declared a state of emergency. now, to politics here in the u.s. our new poll of republican-leaning voters makes for some ready tough reading for sarah palin. 58% view her favorably, which is actually an all-time low for her. palin has a higher unfavorable rating, up to 37%, than other gop candidates. among them, mitt romney has a 60% favorable rating and 21% unfavorable. the poll gives mike huckabee the highest marks. 61% favorable. 18% unfavorable. and the last american world

war i veteran has been laid to rest. president obama was there to pay final respects. the president and vice president biden stopped by the arlington national cemetery chapel where frank buckles was lying in honor. he was just 16 when he lied about his age in order to join the army. he died last month at 110 years old. an incredible hero's farewell, for sure. >> well deserved. now, for this morning's weather around the nation. a wet day from san francisco north, with seattle expecting heavy rain. up to two feet of snow in the cascades and a foot in the northern rockies. morning showers in philadelphia, new york and boston, before warming up by this afternoon. and some lingering, light rain in the carolinas and maine. >> and here in new york, we're looking at 50s. also baltimore, 50s. miami climbs to 81. new orleans, 71. upper 60s in kansas city and omaha. and 56 in chicago. 51 in boise. 61 in salt lake. and phoenix falls just short of the 90-degree mark.

already heating up in arizona. >> i'm jealous. coming up, new numbers just in from japanese stock markets. a rebound after some pretty steep losses. and japanese automakers cut back production in the u.s. but for how long? and on top of that, radiation 101. should you take measures to protect your family? that and more when we come back. a

japanese markets rebounded today after two days of some pretty steep declines. the benchmark nikkei average jumped nearly 6% today, as

investors realized they oversold on monday and tuesday. some experts say aside from the nuclear damage, the economic impact of the earthquake and tsunami actually looks manageable. and stocks were up across most of asia today, although hong kong's hang seng was a little changed. in london, the ftse fell 1.4% yesterday. on wall street, the dow dropped 137 points yesterday. the nasdaq, meanwhile, lost 33 points. two japanese automakers are cutting production in north america because they're not sure they'll have enough parts. toyota is suspending overtime and saturday production at its plants. and subaru is temporarily eliminating overtime. both companies get parts from japan. the federal reserve says the economic recovery is now on, quote, firmer footing. the fed also said tuesday the job market is improving gradually. but it plans to maintain its massive bond-buying program to help the economy grow. and you're not going to like this news. withdrawing cash from the a.t.m.

could take more cash out of your bank account. "the wall street journal" reports some of the biggest banks are imposing new fees. jpmorgan chase is testing fees up to $9, from customers who withdraw from its machines. >> i remember when i used to withdraw $5. pepsi has unveiled an environmentally-friendly bottle. it's the first bottle made entirely by plant material. pepsi claims they look and feel like the current bottles. but they do not require oil to make. that's a big boost. >> the leftovers from pepsi's food business, which including orange peels and potato scraps. they can make bottles out of all that stuff. >> that's incredible. they own tropicana. we like that. next on this wednesday morning, radiation actually is all around us. when we travel. even what we eat. so, how real is the radiation ris frk the disaster in japan?

>> very interesting breaking this down. also to sports. march madness gets under way. we're all playing. so you have five brothers. tough being the only girl. aw, there's the man of the house. who's this ? this is rufus. hey, rufus. he's actually pretty talented. you wanna see him do a trick ? ok. hey rufus. who do we love ? we love our bank. we love our bank. we love our bank. we love our bank. yes, yes. you really love your bank don't you. ally bank customers love our 24/7 customer care that allows you to talk to a real person anytime. ally. do you love your bank ?

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northeast rain dampens i-95 this morning from washington, d.c. to boston. wet on i-90, in upstate new york and i-4 across south dakota. i-5, is crunched from seattle to san francisco. ice and snow from montana to washington. and on parts of i-84 from portland to boise. >> if you're headed to the airport, expect delays in san francisco, boston, new york, and philadelphia. and it has been a dramatic day already in japan. let's update our top story for you. >> another fire that crippled a nuclear plant and worked to cool down overheating reactors had to be suspended after a dangerous search of radiation. workers working inside that plant were ordered out. >> and for the first time japanese officials indicate

there may be damage to all three of the reactor's containment vessels. the nuclear crisis in japan, of course, has plenty of americans concerned about the possibility of spreading radiation. so many people in hawaii and colorado have been buying potassium iodine pills that many stores are actually sold out of them. >> and there's been a run on radiation-detecting geiger counters, something that people probably never heard of before. the question is, is all of this necessary? here's dan harris. >> reporter: the term radiation, has been thought of to be dangerous. the truth is, we're surrounded by radiation. to illustrate the point, we got ahold of this geiger counter. and as you can see, even right here in the middle of central park, new york city, there is always a background level of radiation. look at this.

i'm going to hold this up to my own body. that's because all of us are emitting radiation all the time. we're going to put this up to bananas. and here's what happens when we go up to the monument of christopher columbus. it's made of granite. granite is radioactive but perfectly safe. and as you can see, the meter is pretty much pinning. to see the needle really get pinned, you need to go into grand central station, which we did. this whole place is made of granite and marble, both of which are radioactive. tens of thousands of people walk through that hall every day. >> that's right. >> reporter: are they at risk of getting sick because of the radioactivity around them? >> no. the doses are very small. >> reporter: another place you're exposed to radiation, air travel, because you're closer to the radiation of outer space.

every year, each of us is exposed to about 3.5 millisieverts, that's the term they use, of radiation. that's about 67 chest x-rays or the same as 134 cross-country plane trips. in order to get radiation sickness, you need to be exposed to 1,000 millisieverts at once. and for most people, a fatal dose is about five-times that. to put this all in perspective, the radiation levels at the scene of the fire of the nuclear power plant in japan reached about 400 millisieverts. meaning you would have had to sit there for about 2 1/2 hours to get sick. so, when you see those pictures out of japan, you don't need to worry about your own safety. but, of course, we should all be concerned for the japanese. this is dan harris, in new york. the japanese are getting used to a new post-quake reality. the bustling heart of tokyo on a normal night has giant neon

signs. but last night, it was dark. the power has been turned off as a way to conserve energy. time, now, for sports here at home. march madness is just getting under way. the hoops highlights now from espn news. >> good morning. cole wright here with your espn news update. and with the ncaa championship field to 68 games, we got underway with the first four. clemson and uab. the shots from the start. clemson by eight. more from the first. clemson up 22-7. booker increases that lead. that kept a 21-2 run by the tigers. up 18. andre young, to grant. grant, 22 points, plus 7 rims. 70-52. they face wbu in the second round. in the other first round of the tournament, second half. asheville down three. matt dickey says, let's tie this

up. we go to overtime. down one. j.p. primm. he is fouled. they can't believe that didn't go in. asheville by one. arkansas down four. d'andre williams misses. asheville survives. 81-77. carmelo anthony and the knicks, paying a visit o to the pacers. danny granger, fadeaway "j." pacers, two-point cushion for them. 0.3 ticks on the clock. jared jeffries, inbounds. nowhere near the target. pacers, 119-117. they win. that will do it for us. don't forget, for all and everything more on the sports scene, check out "the highlight express," on espn news. until then, i'm cole wright.

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and see terms and conditions at chantix.com. and now, a look ahead to the stories we'll be watching this wednesday. there are mounting fears about a nuclear meltdown. now, the workers trying to cool the crippled reactor in japan have been forced to leave it. a sudden surge in radiation made it impossible for them to remain inside. a team of experts are in japan to monitor radiation levels in the air and on the ground. a crackdown against anti-government protesters this morning in bahrain has left at least two dead. demonstrators were cleared from a main square in bahrain's capital city. and international space station commander, scott kelly, is back on earth for the first time in five months. his next stop is houston, where he will be greeted by mark

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now "good morning maryland." radiation grips japan as the search for survivors is less likely. we will have the latest on what's happening today. one family owned grocery store are work to help victims of jap ann earthquake. find out -- find out how -- japan's earthquake. find out how wegmans is helping out. war floating hospital the comfort is headed. those stories ahead on this wednesday morning. thanks for joining us i am megan pringle. >> i am charley crowson. a soggy mess. this was just part of my ride in around north baltimore. steady do moderate rain falling. couldn't tack my dog out. he is pensive when it comes to raining. >> he needs a raincoat.

>> yes. a slicker. what's in store for your morning commute? let's chet in with justin berk to find out. >> stay on the right side of the double line while driving. nice to have a photographer with you as you drove in. i am sure that's where the video came from right? >> right? >> look at all the slashs? ocean city, up through rehobeth. that's where the heavy rain s we have leftover rain. locally, showers passing along 83 the hereford zone and new freedom. west ministers and frchtionburg also getting damp. 42 in baltimore. -- finksburg. also getting damp. 42 in baltimore. now the roads with kim brown. >> reporter: good news to know most of the rain is done. however, you are going to find rain soaked roads out there. just be careful to find a few slick spots making your way out the